My son had his first sleepover this past saturday. Being only in 1st grade enlists a variety of opinions on a parents decision to allow this. What made it so easy was that it was at our school counselors house, who probably knows my son better than me, in some ways. So I had an evening alone with my 8 year old daughter.
She is so different when they are apart. She didn’t say, but I know she missed him, though she thought she was only jealous of him.
It sometimes is difficult to acknowledge the existence of such strong feelings in our young ones, but the saving grace is that these feelings are balanced by other feelings that we, as parents, must help shine through. I also felt the absence of him, but that space was filled with pride, hope( that good manners went along with his teddybear) a wonderful comfort in his first flight away from the nest. This is an opportunity I never had as a child.